Bevels on a Bench Grinder

[Gundog48]

I finished the forging and rough grinding of my first ever blade today and I am extremely happy with it! Other than a punch, this is the first thing I have forged and I don't think it could have come out better for a first attempt, it's cleaned up really well. I forged it out of a length of a starter motor ring gear into a bowie style using mole grips and a 2lb ball peen hammer. I've finished the shaping, refined the profile and ground out all the pitting, but I am left with one problem before I can heat treat and polish it- the bevels.

I've removed the side guard from the bench grinder so I have a nice flat edge that has worked well for the rest of the blade, however the real difficulty is finding the right angle to grind at, and to be able to keep it at the same angle the length of the blade to give it a nice neat line. What would you recommend for this? Because it is a bowie-style knife I want the bevels to start at a certain point down the blade and for them to be straight. How would you go about doing this with my particular setup? Would files be a better option, or would it be best to save up for a belt sander?

I'll be sure to post pictures when I'm done, I'm really proud of it so far for a first attempt!

Thanks,
Jake

[Rich Hale]

i tried thatlong ago and gave up on a bench grinder for knves. I use a belt grinder,,However you can anneal the blades and use files .

[ThomasPowers]

You might check the set up in "Step by Step Knifemaking" as he used a bench grinder.

NOTE working on the side of a grinding wheel designed for use on the edge IS NOT SUGGESTED! Failure modes are quite nasty!.

[Loneforge]

I rough forge my bevels in! Anneal then attack with files.....Painstakingly satisfying!

[Jon Smith]

Agreed. Forge the bevels in with a hammer by leaning the blade slightly on edge on the side of the anvil so you can do both sides at once. Then anneal and draw file. Hard on the hands and back but oh so satisfying